Me as a Simpsons Character
A 'Live Laugh Lube' episode with not one but two Emmy-winning comedy writers
Brent Forrester is an impressive man. He won his first Comedy Writing Emmy at age 25 for his work on The Ben Stiller Show. He went on to write for The Simpsons, helped launch King of The Hill, and was a writer, producer and director at NBC's The Office for seven seasons. Brent might not be a household name, but—thanks to his many accomplishments—he lives comfortably. More than comfortably. His beach-adjacent house, where I recently had dinner with him, his hot/cool girlfriend Kelce, and our mutual friend Dan Greaney, reminded me of collector homes I frequented back when I sold art.
Which is not to say that Forrester—a man whose physique and bouts of Broadway-esque energy suggest a man much younger than his 57 years—is not an art collector. Art hangs on his walls. Most of it tasteful shades of brown, making me wonder where he was going to hang my #livelaughlube painting featuring his words “Mom Dad Look” in fluorescent green alongside an image of Death on a flamingo pool floatie. But this story isn’t about my painting or Brent’s taste in art. It’s about what happened after Brent said the following as the four of us sat around his dinner table eating lasagna:
“And that’s why it’s not a good idea to base a protagonist on yourself. To be funny you need to be aware of a character’s flaws, and most people aren’t aware of their own flaws.”
I leaned back in my seat, eyebrows raised. As someone who has literally turned myself into my own protagonist for my 150-page memoir proposal, plus taken countless 12-step inventories, I was pretty confident I knew both my flaws and what was funny about me. So confident, in fact, that I turned to Dan and asked:
“What’s funny about me?”
I was trying to be, if not funny per se, then charmingly bold. Playing chicken with myself before an audience of relative strangers (Brent and his gf). Betting that Dan, someone I’d known for over a decade, couldn’t possibly surprise me with his answer.
My cockiness withered and died the moment Dan took more than five seconds to respond. Oh my god, I thought, there is nothing funny about me. I’m too bland or self-serious, and likely both, to be a memorable character. It felt like worst possible outcome. I did not see it coming at all.
To be continued…
In the meantime, please check out Brent Forrester’s and my collab on IG below, along with my collabs with comedian Camirin Farmer and The Simpsons writer Broti Gupta.
I’m with Inga, here! Can’t wait to learn “what’s funny about” you from someone else. Bold question, indeed, but I think it’s a little like asking someone to describe what a banana tastes like. I know you’re funny! But Geez, don’t ask me what’s funny about you. I read your essays and notes and gratitudes and sometimes laugh with you, sometimes “belly” laugh with you and then other times I think with you, provoke with you and occasionally cry with you (or share tears of joy or sadness or confusion).
That whole wonderful constellation of thoughts and words shows that you walk joyfully in the world of “funny.”
I know in my bones, Dear One, that you “own” humor (a bit, or a lot different than being funny) and enjoy the light/dark curse of humanity-you can employ it deftly as either a sword or a shield. And both require human expertise to avoid injury to oneself or others. Maybe a “coming attraction” from your pen!
Greg
I’ll be waiting for ‘to be contacted’ :)